Hades: 10 Reasons You MUST Play Supergiant's New Rogue-Like
8. The Well-Balanced Progression System
Unlike many other rogue-likes, Hades both forces the player to lose the powers and money they gain during each run, but allows for a level of progression through XP and other permanent collectibles that can be spent on base upgrades, which makes future runs easier.
Unless God-Mode is turned on, however, the progression is still steady and not too OP, with a series of challenges provided to the player via a customizable "Pact of Punishment" that makes gameplay more difficult, but at a pace and form the player is comfortable with.
If you want to test your speed, you can give yourself a timer. If you want to test your strength, you can adjust your opponents' health or damage, or give them special attacks. The game never allows players to become stagnant, but doesn't push out players who are there for the story or collectibles as opposed to upping difficulty for difficulty's sake.
Paired with the way the story progresses along with each run, Supergiant Games has provided players with a wonderfully intuitive system that pushes them to improve without forcing them to get uncomfortable with the gameplay.